"Should I say, 'As expected of Slytherin'? You should be happy; this is a talent from your own house." After making the joke, Dumbledore added, "This also proves that he at least knows the boundaries of what he can and cannot do, which is a commendable quality."
"I have no use for such a talent; as long as he doesn't cause me trouble, that's enough," Snape retorted insincerely, though the faint glint of pride in his eyes did not escape Dumbledore's notice.
"In any case, you should find more time to keep an eye on Alan. After the tragedy involving the Potters and the Longbottoms, who were very close to him, I was worried he might lose control. Currently, it seems he can still manage his emotions." Dumbledore, having delved into the mysteries of magic for so many years, knew exactly how much drastic emotional shifts could warp a wizard's power.
At the mention of Lily's name, Snape's face instantly darkened. After a perfunctory huff, he turned and stroled out of the office. Dumbledore could only shake his head helplessly at the sight.
The following month passed peacefully. Since the pure-blood faction had submitted and Yaxley—the seventh-year Prefect and Head Boy—had fled, the atmosphere in Slytherin underwent a significant shift. Coupled with William's solid reputation among the half-blood students, the Purity Committee was abolished under his initiative, and all confiscated Muggle items were returned to their owners.
The pure-blood students dared not voice any opposition; their leader was gone, and Alan's presence was enough to suppress any lingering dissent. They mostly avoided Alan now, even the usually boisterous Travers. Without anyone to instigate trouble, the house returned to its former tranquility. Vivian's Mahjong Club reopened, and the common room buzzed with activity every day.
However, while the house was peaceful internally, external rivalries remained intense. In a recent Quidditch match, Gryffindor and Slytherin once again turned the pitch into an armed brawl, and the animosity between the two houses remained high. The pure-blood students vented the frustrations they suffered under Alan onto the Gryffindors, and pranks between the two houses were constant.
But none of this concerned Alan. He was currently preoccupied with a newly developed charm. The Freezing Charm he had used during the battle in Hogsmeade had provided significant inspiration. Using it as a foundation, combined with his research into temperature magic and the flow of mana, he had developed a spell with a unique function.
He named it the "Disabling Curse."
He combined the principles of hypothermia with magic-flow disruption to create a curse that could actively strip a target of their power. In his vision, any wizard or magical creature subjected to this charm would experience a gradual drain of their internal reserves until they completely lost both physical strength and magical capability.
His initial idea had been to develop an "Energy Absorption Curse" to take magic for his own use, but that required deep knowledge of Bloodline Magic—a current blind spot in his research. While the materials submitted by the pure-blood students contained some information on the subject, it wasn't yet enough to build a functional model, so he settled for this simplified version.
The problem now was testing. He had already performed successful trials on simple magical creatures, but he needed a human-scale subject to observe the drain on larger magic reserves. Ordinary animals didn't possess the necessary energy for observation. While there were many magical creature communities in the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid was responsible for their care, and Alan didn't want to put his friend in a difficult position.
Ideally, the test subject would be a wizard. Using his friends for training-type research was one thing; even if those sessions weren't perfectly successful, they still strengthened the body. Testing a raw curse, however, carried significant risks, and he was hesitant. Testing on himself was out of the question; the memory of his accident with the infrasonic spell was still vivid.
Just as he was weighing his options, a knock came at his door. He collected his thoughts and opened it to find William.
"Alan, don't stay cooped up in here all day. It's the weekend, and Vivian and I have agreed to go to Hogsmeade to relax. You should come along." William was in high spirits lately; the Quidditch team was finally free of political control, and he could return to his role as Seeker.
Alan thought for a moment, deciding that a change of scenery might clear his head. He nodded and agreed. Since dealing with Yaxley, Alan could move outside the school relatively safely, but because he was usually buried in research, he hadn't truly explored the village yet.
The three of them set out from Hogwarts. The weather was still biting, and as they trod through the thick snow, the cold wind whipped at their faces. Along the way, Vivian prattled on about Hogsmeade, knowing every shop and alleyway by heart. Her constant chatter was a stark contrast to the silent, stoic Vivian that Milly had once impersonated.
Once they reached the village, she started her tour all over again. "Look, that's Zonko's Joke Shop. Last time I bought a dozen hiccup sweets for Charles; you should have seen the look on his face. And Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop—the decor is a bit gaudy, but the drinks are excellent."
As they wandered, Alan's attention was caught by something in the distance. He walked straight toward a specific building, leaving Vivian and William to exchange puzzled looks and follow.
Alan stopped at a corner of the road. In front of him stood a dilapidated building that looked more like a hovel than a business.
"What's wrong? Why are you stopping here? You aren't thinking of going in, are you?" Vivian looked at the bar with a disgusted expression. "That's the Hog's Head. The owner is a total weirdo, and the place is filthy. Everyone inside is mysterious and hides their face under hoods. I'm telling you now, I'm not going in."
Alan hadn't come to the bar to buy a drink. Instead, the sight of the place stirred his memories. He remembered that before Christmas in his first year, he and Sirius had attended a secret meeting. It had been in a dilapidated storage room, and the atmosphere of that place was strikingly similar to this bar.